The Long Return Home
by polyisobutene
Summary: Sam returns to Seattle after leaving to join the Air Force as a pilot fours years precious. Carly is one of the most spoken of names in the world of event planning. Perfect strangers meet again, yet what will time have changed between them? CAM
1. A Yellow Taxi on a Dark Night

Disclaimer: I do not own iCarly, and am not making any profitable venture by the use of the following characters.

Authors Note: This is my first iCarly fanfiction, however not my first venture in writing. Please if you wish to review, give me advice and tips about what I can improve upon, and if you do so wish what I did well with.

The Long Return Home

By: Polyisobutene

The city of Seattle flashed by the dirtied windows of the taxi; tall buildings, neon lights, and pedestrians became simple blurs. The sole passenger of the yellow vehicle leaned forward, the worn leather of the seats groaning loudly.

"Never thought I would see the day I end up back here," the blonde sighed, pressing her forehead against the glass of the window.

The cabbie cast a glance at the young woman sitting in the back. "So, you been here before?" he asked, his voice hoarse from years of tobacco use.

"Yeah, grew up here, actually," the blonde said with a small smile, "Spent many a good year raising all kinds of chaos on these streets."

"Oh, yeah?" the middle aged man laughed, deep lines wrinkling his forehead, "so what brings you back here?"

"Unfinished business," the woman answered airily.

The cabbie turned his eyes back to the road and the sound of tires rolling over pavement prevailed again.

"Well here you are, Bushwell Plaza!" the cabbie said, slapping the car into park, and getting out.

The blonde woman pushed her door open and stepped onto the curb, her curious gaze looking for all the changes the last four years had made on the plaza. With a heave the cabbie pulled the worn brown luggage bag out of the trunk and placed it on the curb. Patting his chest briefly he crawled back into his cab.

"Hey, wait!" the woman cried, darting towards the window. "I haven't paid yet."

The man smiled gently, pushing up his ball cap back exposing warm brown eyes. "Since when has Samantha Puckett ever rejected something free?" he asked, reaching up and patting Sam's hands that rested on his window seal.

The Sam's head jerked in surprise, before a sad smile slide over it. "So you still know me, huh? Thought the whole town would have forgotten me by now."

"How can I forget a face like yours, you whipped up more trouble as a girl than anyone else I can recall," he laughed. "When you left, things got boring. Hard not to notice you gone."

"Yeah, I guess so," Sam said, straightening up. "Thanks for the lift, then."

"Don't mention it," he smiled, the small yellow taxi pulling away.

Leaning down with a sigh Sam picked up the battered luggage and limped into the lobby. Her smiled at the similar decorations fell when she spotted the attendant. In place of Lewburt sat a refreshed young woman with a fake smile plastered onto her face. Sam limped up to the counter, leaning against the polished desk.

"Sam Puckett, my friend was supposed to call down and tell you that I was coming," Sam said smoothly.

"Oh, yes!" Cathy, or so the small name badge said, exclaimed. "Miss Shay said that you would know the way up?"

"Right-o," Sam said, starting to limp towards the elevator.

"Would you like some help with that?" Cathy asked, walking around the desk to the blond.

Sam turned around, a glare affixed on her delicate features. Cathy smiled nervously and slowly stepped back behind her little desk. With a huff Sam continued on her way on the familiar path to Carly Shay's apartment.

Leaning against the rail in the elevator Sam reached down and rubbed her left knee. The tender joint was hot and swollen to the touch, and the pain shot straight up her leg into her chest. With a grunt she pushed herself forward and exited the small box, wandering down the familiar hall.

Although four years older, wiser, and stronger the wooden door before Sam felt like solid oak gates, looming over the blond like an ominous beast. Pale knuckles brushed against the door, creating a hallowed echo on the wood. Sam shifted onto her right leg, eyes staring vaguely at the walls of the hallway. Had they always been so white?

A chain could be heard moving, and the brass knob turned. Sam sucked in a breath, her blue eyes darting towards the entrance to the place she used to consider her second home. There in the door stood a woman, about Sam's age, with long ringlets of chocolate curls and bright, full features. Eyes scanning from the ground up, Sam could not help but the notice the trendy, yet professional way the woman before her dressed in a black skirt and smooth red top. Sam mentally reprimand herself for dressing in only a pair of ratty cargo pants and blue tee shirt.

"Long time no see, Carly," Sam spoke up first, putting on a small half smile.

To Carly however, time was frozen. After the trio had graduated high school, Sam had surprised everyone and left to become a pilot in the Air Force. It had been a little over four years since Carly had seen Samantha in the flesh, and part of her, a silly voice in her head, wondered fearfully if it was but a ghost standing on the side of the door frame.

"Hey, Carls, anyone in there?" Sam asked, waving a hand in front of the taller girls face.

Without warning or sign, Carly leapt forward and grabbed Sam into a tight hug. "Sam!" she cried jubilantly with a laugh.

The sudden weight caught Sam off guard, her left leg giving way underneath her sending both women to the floor with a startled cry. Carly pushed herself up onto her elbows, her hair falling down around Sam's face.

"Long time no see, stranger."

"Yeah…" Sam agreed, her eyes flickering between two pools of chocolate brown.

Carly licked her lips unconsciously and sat back, helping the blond stand up.

"Let's get you settled than," Carly smiled, mentioning Sam into the apartment she once knew so well.

The first thing that Sam noticed was that the apartment had not changed a lot. Odd sculptures littered the living area, and the same couch was perched before the t.v. as it was before she had left for the Academy. Carly grabbed Sam's bag and hauled it over to the corner where Spencer's room used to be.

"This is going to be your room, is that okay?" Carly asked, setting the bag down before the door. "I thought it would be easier for you if you didn't have to go up and down the stairs all the time, or use the elevator."

Sam limped over to the room, peering in. It was blandly decorated with a bed with blue sheets, a desk, and a small closet built into the wall.

"So Spencer finally made the move to New York, huh?" Sam asked, stepping in and leaning against the metal desk.

"Yeah, he left two years after we graduated," Carly said, leaning against the opened door.

"I see…" Sam mumbled, turning to look out the small window across from the closet.

Never before had the two been more prefect strangers. As Carly glanced over Sam, gone was the charismatic freedom that once set her friend apart, replaced by something more refined, matured. To Sam, the whole world was queasy, a deep unease settling in the pit of her stomach. She chewed the inside of her cheek, torn between the body of teenager hell bent on going to jail and the disciplined ace she had become. It was a like sick game of limbo, like reentering a past life that seemed so far gone.

"I made you dinner," Carly broke the silence.

"Does it include ham?" Sam asked, limping back out to the kitchen area.

"Ham, bacon and pork chops, all of your favorites. I even got you fat cakes for dessert," Carly giggled, following the blond out.

"By God! I must have died and gone to heaven!" Sam cried, spotting the table overflowing with food. "Have I ever told you how awesomely amazing you are, Carls?"

Dinner was a noisy affair, and not because of chatter. Even the military could not beat out the beast that was a Puckett stomach, as Sam attacked her food with unusually characteristic vigor. The blond quickly excused herself after the meal, feeling the fatigue of a whole days travel, and sprawled out onto the sofa, falling fast asleep.

Carly sat down besides Sam after locking up the apartment and changing. She spread a blanket over the two of them as she did when they were teenagers. The lights in the dark streets of Seattle cast their dim glow into the apartment. The brunette scooted closer to her friend, resting against the blondes side.

"I missed you, Sam" she whispered, losing quickly to sleep.

As Carly passed away from the conscious world Sam smiled and whispered in reply, "I missed you too, Carls."


	2. Of Pills and Ills

Disclaimer: I am not making any profitable venture out of using these characters.

Authors Note: After a positive response by readers, I find myself modivated to compose. As always, please review with something of value. The CAM will begin in the next chapter or so.

**Of Pills and Ills**

**By: Polyisobutene**

Nothing would focus. No matter how hard the blond woman tired, her eyes could not latch onto a single object, a single plane of space. The world was tumbling around her, land and sky switching so quickly that vertigo clawed at her stomach. Sam could feel the blood pooling in her legs as the g-forces defied the frantic efforts of her cardiac muscles. Black spots floated over the flashing canopy. A sharp metallic crack was followed by the deafening whistle of wind- Sam's whole body jerked sharply, falling off of the sofa onto the floor with a thud.

"Wha-?" Carly croaked, falling into the emptied space left by the blondes' rapid departure. The brunette sat up, running the back of her hand sleepily over her eyes. "Sam?" she called, unable to see her friend.

"Uh," Sam moaned from the stark hardwood flooring. A light sheen of sweat glinted off of alabaster skin. "That hurt."

"Sam!" Carly cried, quickly kneeling down besides her friend.

Sam let out a shuttered breath and rubbed her temples with the heels of her palms. Shivers ran along the length of her spin, the cold perspiration dotting her cheeks.

"Are you okay? Sam?" Carly soothed Sam's bangs aside, fanning her face.

With long breaths through her nose, Sam acclimated her breathing until her chest was no longer heaving. "Hey, could you get me one of the pink pills from the outer compartment of my suitcase," she asked weakly, "and a glass of water?"

Carly nodded and quickly found the orange pill bottle in question. Uncapping it she poured a single pink tablet out and marched quickly to the kitchen and filled a coffee mug with the tap water.

"Here," Carly said hesitantly, placing the items on the table to help Sam sit up. Once rested against the lip of the sofa Sam tossed the pill into her mouth and tossed her head back, finishing the glass of water quickly.

Hunched back onto her heels, Carly reached out and rubbed Sam's good knee gently. "You alright there?" she asked again timidly, watching the tension slowly ease from her counterparts' body.

Sam took several more deep breaths, whipping off the drying sweat off her face. "Yeah, sorry to freak you out like that," she said, giving Carly's hand a reassuring squeeze. "I sort of forgot to take my medicine last night," she gave a chuckle, pushing herself up to sit on the sofa.

Carly gave Sam a disapproving glare as she moved to sit by her friend, "Sam…"

"I know!" Sam cut her off quickly, pausing long enough to look ashamed, "It was an honest mistake. I am normally better about it."

Brown eyes softened at the deflated demeanor of her best friend. "Hey, how about I make us some bacon for breakfast?" she asked, grabbing Sam's hand.

"I thought you were never going to ask," Sam moaned, grabbing her stomach exaggeratedly. "I am a growing girl, after all!"

"Horizontally, maybe," Carly chuckled, quickly darting away from Sam's playful swat.

"Why you little!" Sam growled playfully, hobbling after her friend.

"Sam- Sam wait, no! Sam!" Carly cried, running around the island in the kitchen from an ice cube wielding blonde.

Several ice cubes later, and a full pound of bacon, Carly Shay stepped out of her bedroom ready to leave for work.

"There are left-overs in the fridge for when you get hungry," Carly said, walking over to the door to pick up her keys and purse.

Sam nodded from her sprawled position on the couch, flopping the remote down onto her stomach with a quiet slap. "Cool, so when you will be back?" she asked, eyeing her friend.

Carly blushed under the not-so-subtle scrutiny of cerulean eyes, "Probably not till late. I have a dinner meeting with the sponsors of the charity ball I am planning. Not till after nine, I suppose."

The figure on the couch deflated slightly, "Oh. Okay," and turned back to the drone of the television.

Carly shifted, her red high heels clicking on the floor. "If you need anything, I left my number on the counter…." The blonde grunted in response. With the click of the lock Sam clicked off the TV and sighed into the empty apartment.

"What the fuck is wrong with me," Sam moaned into the silence, curling into a ball. The wind was still ringing faintly in her head, even an hour later. "I haven't had one of those dreams in months…."

With the poise and prowl of elegant business woman, Carly strutted into the high rise building wherein her office resided.

"Good morning, Miss Shay," her receptionist greeted, swiveling in her chair to hand Carly a folder filled with documents. "The floral company finally sent over this over, the seasons new schemes, I put them all into a file for you."

"Thank you so much, Megan!" Carly smiled, taking the bland folder on her way to her private office.

"You are very welcome, I have your schedule for today printed up and on your desk," Megan replied, turning back to her small desk and computer.

"What would I do without you?" Carly chuckled, entering the modernly designed onyx office space.

The modest sized business that Carly had started during her time as an undergraduate student at the University of Washington had quickly bloomed into a success story for the young woman. Carly sat down in her sleek mesh chair and gazed out of the full wall window. The view of Seattle was amazing from her vantage point, looking over the city towards the ocean.

"Spencer! Spencer!" eighteen year old Carly Shay shouted, hopping excitedly about the living room of their apartment. "I got into the program!"

"Really?" the elder Shay asked, rushing out of his bedroom to look at the thick, formal letter. "That is awesome!" he cried, enveloping Carly into a mighty hug. "I knew you would, kiddo!"

The brunette woman laughed, her face flushing with excitement. "I have to go tell Sam!" she squealed, grabbing a light jacket for the short walk to her best friend's apartment.

"Why not just call her?" Spencer asked, leaning onto the counter in the kitchen.

"Because this is important, of course," Carly laughed, quickly leaving and shutting the door behind her.

When Carly arrived at the Puckett apartment and knocked on the door, she was greeted by the face of her best friend.

"Hey, Melanie!" Carly said excitedly, noticing in passing the duller than usual smile from the twin. "Sam home?"

"Yeah, she is in her room," the kindly woman opened the door, allowing Carly to pass into the threshold.

"Hey, is that you, Carls?" Sam called, leaning out of her bedroom. The blondes face light up with a smile, "Have good news for me?"

"I got in!" Carly all but squealed, throwing herself into the stronger girls arms. Sam laughed, wrapping her arms around Carly's middle and twirling the brunette around. Melanie leaned against the wall, a small smile on her own face.

"I hate to interrupt the moment, but I have to leave to go back to school soon. Might I have my dear sister back for a moment?" Melaine asked sweetly, touching Carly's arm lightly.

The youngest Shay blushed and laughed, "Oh! Yeah, of course!" she said, pulling herself away the warmth of Sam's body.

"Hey, I will come over for dinner tonight Carls and you can tell me all about this business-ma-bob program, eh?" Sam asked, twirling her hands with a grin.

"Sounds like a plan," Carly said, practically hopping out of the apartment with a wave, too excited to care about the excess of energy she was excreting.

What Carly Shay would never know was the conversation that followed between the two sisters. Heatedly for hours the two fought back and forth, to and fro, over Samantha's brazen choices. After the small door knob clicked shut, the embers that sat beneath two sets of identical DNA caught fire, and two hours later Melanie crawled into a taxi none the happier and defeated in her cause. That night Spencer made his famous spaghetti tacos and a full ham, and the two best friends did not sleep until well into the hours of the wee morning. It would be the last night they would spend together for more than four years.

But four years later, there they were. Carly gently flipped open the file on her desk and began to finger through the various floral arrangements and ideas. She would hum, occasionally marking a page with a bright pink sticky note for later reference.

The apartment seemed bigger than Sam remembered, and yet smaller all at the same time. The ceilings felt too high and lofty, hovering in the distance. Sam limped over to her new bedroom, pulling open the curtains.

Blue eyes gazed over the little room, and with a resolute hum Sam threw herself onto the neatly folder bed, smiling in satisfaction at the now wrinkled sheets.

"What to do, what to do," she mused, staring at the unfamiliar ceiling.

With a loud, languid yawn her eyes drooped, falling into a deep, dreamless sleep. And that was how Carly found her old friend, having slept the whole day away by ten that evening. Sam didn't know wither or not it could be called sleep, the daze in which she rested; somewhere between the land of dreams and the ground of reality. Carly did not know of the fact that Samantha spent each day just the same, unawares as she continued with her work week. Sam was up and about whenever the brunette was home, smiling and chatting, reminiscing, however when left alone the blonde would become quiet, lost in her own world.

Sam could not stay in her world of dreams forever, and she knew it.


End file.
